Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I agree with the Deputy's comments around encouraging local authorities and Departments to make sure we spend the money. Covid interrupted a lot, but, hopefully, this year we will have a clear run. I expect all budgets will be fully utilised. In everything, I will be pushing for acceleration. This Government has to be about delivery and getting good value for money in that delivery. Applying the same urgency we saw in regard to Covid to the housing crisis, the climate crisis and the reform in the health system is the key metric for the Government.

With regard to diesel vehicles and the future - I do not have the statistics in front of me, but if my officials have them I will be happy to share them - the proportion of diesel vehicles within new purchases has fallen significantly in the past two to three years. I expect that to continue and to accelerate in its own right for a variety of reasons, but in the main because we are going to see battery electric, plug-in hybrid electric and full electric vehicles take off. All of the manufacturers are going to start providing such options. During an engagement I had yesterday with the SEAI on a separate issue, we were in agreement that we are not far away from the point of comparative life-cycle costs. They are actually more economic and, therefore, their use will start to accelerate.

The Fit for 55 plan, which I support, provides for the ending of the sale of combustion vehicles by 2030. I think it was the former Minister, Deputy Bruton, who introduced that in his climate action plan. That type of message and signal is very appropriate to give to the Irish public so that people and retailers and garages can start to plan for that. As I said, the EU Fit for 55 package contains a proposal around that timeframe. The signal that we are switching from combustion vehicles, particularly for passenger cars, is important.